I get it. The install base is huge on smart phones. In fact, the Entertainment Software Association claims that 53% of American households who own a gaming system play on a smart phone with a 15% increase of smartphone and wireless device use in 2012 alone. It’s worrying, and cell phone gaming alongside free-to-play has been behind the likes of micro-transactions and in-game currency within modern games.
To get the record straight, I generally hate cell phone gaming and prefer to keep a Playstation Vita or a 3DS handy for games like Super Smash Bros, Persona 4 Golden, and Fire Emblem: Awakening – to name a few. As a gamer, I like a deep story, exploring worlds, and/or a great gameplay system to get wrapped up in all my games. Cell phone gaming (mostly) doesn’t provide that. It has the tedious nature of a repetitive “arcade-like” structure that is urging you to pay for more tries or there are annoying ads plastered on the bottom or top of the screen. That isn’t gaming for me. Add all of this to the ridiculous money-grabbing nature of the smartphone market and gaming just doesn’t seem so special anymore.
What also makes gaming not-so-special anymore is the smartphone market’s users. Sure, some actually pay for their games, but with such a focus on freemium and 99-cent titles, our favorite series are being bogged down by this infuriating user base. Stoic Games, the developers behind The Banner Saga, told Polygon that on the iOS Store they couldn’t sell their game for that much money and with one to two years of production behind it, it’s not possible to release a game like The Banner Saga on mobile platforms first.
Instead, they went with PC and after its initial release and sales, Stoic Games made the game available on iOS. The mostly cheap audience of the iOS platform is a significant issue for developers, and Apple is trying to support games (via Pocket Gamer) which have monetary value in their “Pay Once and Play” initiative with games such as Minecraft, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and Threes being among those highlighted.
Another factor of mobile devices I hate is the control scheme for most titles. With one basic control, touch, it’s difficult to input many controls, and the games that the hardcore usually play are in-depth in this sphere. For me, most mobile games are too basic, and I lose interest quickly. They can be great for puzzle games and some RPG’s but not much else. The limitations of the platform, in addition, spark the hate I have for these machines.
For example, instead of releasing a HD port of Dragon Quest VIII for a device like the Vita, Square Enix decided to go with an iOS and Android release. One of the major issues with this port is that this version has no voice acting – it’s all text. Part of the charm of Dragon Quest VIII was its superb, personality driven voice acting, and the storytelling of this RPG is deeply hampered by the crappy phone experience. Plus, the controls for the port outside of turn based battles looks incredibly awkward in its portrait format; yeah, you can’t even play it in 16:9 widescreen.
One painful version of a hardcore game translating into a casual mobile title is Dungeon Keeper. The game was once known as a 90’s classic by RPG fans, but EA laid it with copious amounts of micro-transactions that restricted the player from progressing, and a cow-clicker (Farmville) style of gameplay. Andrew Wilson, the CEO of EA, admitted to Eurogamer that “for people who’d grown up playing Dungeon Keeper there was a disconnect there. In that aspect we didn’t walk that line as well as we could have. And that’s a shame,” Wilson later added, “We misjudged the economy.” Favorite games from core gamers over the years should not be treated in this maniacal smart phone gameplay and micro-transaction system.
In addition, PlayStation All-Stars Island, at the time of its release, was incredibly aggravating to the fan base and watered down the whole idea of the initial game in the first place; a love letter to PlayStation fans…Now it’s kinda soggy with Coke Zero, and the ink’s running down the paper. Ever since the release of PlayStation All-Stars Island, my excitement for PlayStation games and characters went down drastically because they cheapened a game that symbolizes the company’s history. PlayStation All-Stars Island had ad placements and uninspired mini-games and clones of games already available on the App Store/Google Play Store. Plus, I would have liked to see Coke Zero sponsor the original game for more content rather than having an uninspired smartphone cash in.
Now Nintendo, one of the longest standing video game companies in the world, has now succumbed to the horrid hell of mobile gaming. Fantasy Life and the long-loved puzzle series, Professor Layton, are now headed to mobile devices. Fans of these games who once enjoyed them with proper controls rather than touch screens will have to make the switch if they want to play the next title. What if these two are successful and the next Mario or Zelda were mobile exclusive?
While writing this article, one of my favorite video game series, Kingdom Hearts, has been confirmed to be coming to smart phones. I just hope that this is only a side title or even an app to go with Kingdom Hearts III instead of a full on Birth By Sleep or Dream Drop Distance-like installment.
Now don’t get me wrong: cell phones and tablets can be the perfect place for gaming when they’re home to the right type of game. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft’s fantastic for the platform it’s on, what with the appeal of its pick-up-and-play controls to both casual and hardcore gamers. The gameplay itself isn’t harmed by the touchscreen and it might just be more compelling in this format. The game also has a fair free-to-play model, which is refreshing for the smartphone market. PC Simulation games like Sim City, The Sims or Game Dev Tycoon would fit so well with the touch screen too as the user interface is mainly controlled by the mouse. They’re the type of games I want to play for a few minutes on the bus or on a lunch break, shut down, and then play again a few hours later somewhere else. This works for puzzle games such as Hitman GO, Angry Birds, and Bejeweled Blitz 2 as well.
However, if a heavy game like Dragon Quest VIII, Dungeon Keeper or now Kingdom Hearts hits smartphones, there’ll be a chill down my spine. An in-depth narrative, engaged controls, and high resolution graphics don’t accompany the platform, and I hope that game companies start to realize that there shouldn’t be a hampered down experience for gaming’s top console/PC series on smart phones.